In her October 1 ABCNews.com story, "Should Candidates' Sons Serve on the Frontline?", Emily Friedman explored the potential problems that could arise with the sons of presidential candidate John McCain and vice presidential candidates Joe Biden and Sarah Palin serving on the front lines in armed conflict:
While Biden, 39, and Palin, 19, are just ordinary troops today, on Nov. 5, the day after the election, one of them will also be the son of the vice president of the United States of America.
A protective Secret Service detail will arrive soon after, along with the "Prince Harry question": Should they stay like any other soldier, or will they have become too tempting a target that endangers them and the other soldiers in their units? Should they be reassigned?
These are valid questions to ask, but Friedman never gets to the root reason why this is a larger issue now than when say Abraham Lincoln or FDR were president had children serving in combat.
Nowhere did Friedman ask if the media's access to deployed personnel, particularly those who are related to the president or vice president, should be curtailed in the interests of national security, or if American journalists are too prone to put their desire to get a juicy scoop above the valid concerns of the Pentagon in keeping deployment details under wraps for the safety of the troops and the success of their mission.
